As an employer, you know that benefits can be expensive, and difficult to manage. What could possibly be the advantage of adding more expenses to your budget, and why should you provide benefits that go past the standard of health insurance and paid time off?
IonTuition recognizes that many businesses ask these same questions, and it’s why we’re here to explain some reasons why offering student loan assistance can make a significant difference in the culture and community of your company — as well as improve individual lives. Learn more in our blog, and know that IonTuition can help colleges, employers, and brokers get the employee perks programs they need. Get started with us today.
#1 – You’ll be helping solve the debt crisis.
As we talked about in a previous blog, the current state of student loan debt in the United States is abysmal. With the debt rate at nearly $1.5 trillion dollars, our student loan debt is currently more than $600 billion higher than credit card debt. Considering how nearly everyone has a credit card, but millions of Americans do not have student loan debt, this speaks to the astronomical rates of tuition — as well as the negative financial impact this can have on anyone who has chosen a path of higher education, and needed to rely on loans to make it happen.
Are you alone able to “solve” the student loan debt crisis? Probably not. But if you set an example as an employer who matches or helps pay off some of the existing debt, others will follow in your lead. If even half of all employers provided some financial aid or student loan assistance, this could help tackle the debt that affects millions of people in the country. This, in turn, can have positive impacts, such as…
#2 – Reducing the debt could mean stimulating the economy.
So much of the working population is a part of the millennial generation (considered by some researchers to be anyone born between 1977-1995). Some of the most important parts of the economy, such as buying a house or taking out student loans, have gotten drastically more expensive for millennials, and costs have increased in such a way that salaries very rarely keep up or match these expenses.
By helping reduce the debt of your employees (or really, when any debt is reduced, for anybody), people have more money to spend. Some of those bigger purchases, such as a house or a better car, become more attainable when people aren’t needing to pay as much to get out of debt. When more people are able to buy things, the demand increases, which can help create an upturn in the economy as a result.
#3 – You’ll be at a hiring advantage.
Student loan assistance is a huge advantage to choosing what company to work for. In fact, Forbes states that “In the 2015 American Student Assistance survey, 76% of respondents said that if a prospective employer offered a student loan repayment benefit, it would be a deciding or contributing factor to accept the job.”
Considering that only 4 percent of companies are offering student loan assistance, you would have a huge edge over your competitors. The smartest companies aren’t solely looking for the best talent, they’re looking for ways to make the best talent come to them. No one wants to lose out on an incredible job candidate to a competitor — making your business a standout in the world of benefits is one such way to make people want to come work for you.
#4 – You’ll keep more employees.
Going off of what the smartest companies do (and don’t), the best and most successful employers don’t solely focus on getting incredible candidates — they work to keep them. High turnover rates, or really any turnover rate, has a negative impact on companies, both from a fiscal and cultural perspective. When your employees are being cared for in such a way, if they’re receiving help tackling some of their debt, this makes a huge difference in whether they want to continue working for you. If you have incredible benefits, such as student loan assistance, it might seem like it’s costing your business. But for the sake of keeping exceptional employees, it’s a worthy cost, and one that might save you money — or even help you profit.
#5 – Your company culture will thrive.
It’s true what they say: happiness is contagious. Happy workers are not only more productive, as we mentioned in a previous blog, but they have a more positive impact on the culture of a company. This in turn creates a fun, optimistic, and collaborative work environment, which absolutely makes a difference for your business. By offering student loan assistance, you’re eliminating some of the stress that your employees feel, you’re opening more financial doors and pathways for them, and you’re setting the tone and climate for where they work, by showing that you care.
Financial stress is one of the most challenging burdens that a person can face, and — try as we might — we simply can’t completely shut stressors out or “leave them at the door.” By getting rid of some of the stress your employees face, you’re making it easier for people to truly focus on their job. Not to mention, you’re simply helping them out, and showing that they are valued and cared for at your business.
Ultimately, offering student loan assistance is a mark of your authenticity and genuine nature as an employer. In the next few decades, the working industry in this country is going to change. It’s going to be more about what you can do for your workers and your staff, and how you can ensure they are not solely numbers and figures that make you money, but are human beings first — and are treated as such.
The question of providing student loan assistance may very well likely not be an “if,” but a “when.” By starting with IonTuition, you’ll have access to a number of toolkits to help better manage your benefits and benefits program — all of which can be used and utilized by yourself, as well as your employers. With toolkits such as IonMatch, IonLearn, IonPerks, IonManage, and IonPay, understanding benefits (and providing incredible perks) just got easier. Sign on with our team today, and set the standard for how employees should be treated, both in and outside of the workplace.